


a name for a kiss

by politicalmamaduck



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alcohol, Canon Compliant, F/F, Flirting, Post-Star Wars: A New Hope, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:28:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26732869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/politicalmamaduck/pseuds/politicalmamaduck
Summary: Leia meets a beautiful Rebellion contact in a cantina for an intelligence transaction.
Relationships: Leia Organa/Qi'ra
Comments: 8
Kudos: 7





	a name for a kiss

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SouthSideStory](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SouthSideStory/gifts).



> Written for my dear friend SouthSideStory. Thank you so much for the fantastic suggestion of Leia/Qi'ra!

The woman sitting across from Leia was older, cultured--the kind of woman Leia wanted to be as a bored young princess growing up on Alderaan. She wanted to see the world, have drinks with interesting beings in luxurious cantinas across the galaxy, and convince those interesting beings to support democracy and the Rebellion. 

Whether this woman supported democracy, or merely her own interests, Leia could not say, though she assumed the latter. Her clothing was finely cut, her sleeves and cloak long for both protection and warmth. Leia did not see an obvious weapon, though she herself could use even a hairpin for protection and lock-picking if need be. 

She would be a fool to trust this woman. She would be a fool to trust anyone, anymore, but somehow, her trust instantly extended to a farm boy, a smuggler, and a Wookiee the moment they entered her life. 

Leia hoped they were all safe on their various missions. She hoped she would make it through this mission, out of this cantina, and off this planet safely. She didn’t doubt the woman across from her had much more backup than she did. The Rebellion couldn’t spare it. The organization--probably criminal, Leia had to admit--to which this woman belonged certainly could. 

Leia needed the intel this woman possessed, and she knew it. It was only a matter of how much she was going to bleed the Rebellion dry for it.

She was charming and beautiful, and Leia was nervous, though she never would have admitted it, nor anticipated that merely meeting a beautiful woman in a cantina for a drink would have made her nervous. 

Leia stared down Darth Vader himself. She could haggle with this woman and get the intel the Rebellion needed.

The woman’s eyes twinkled in the low light as the server brought Leia’s drink. She smiled, and raised her glass. Leia couldn’t help but notice the way her lips curled, not a speck of her immaculate lipstick out of place. “To new beginnings,” the woman said, inclining her head to Leia. 

“To new beginnings,” Leia replied, returning the gesture and clinking their glasses. 

After savoring her drink, her lipstick appearing untouched, the woman folded her hands upon the table. “Shall we begin?” she said, smiling once more, and Leia knew there were a thousand or more secrets hiding behind that smile.

If she possessed the credits, Leia would have paid to know them all. 

* * *

They talked of everything and nothing, each assuming the other understood their coded words. Their conversation was a deadly dance, circling around one another and dipping to accommodate the other, always pausing to take their partner’s measure. 

Leia had always enjoyed verbal sparring with a pleasant companion. This was a dance--or duel--she knew intimately well, for which her parents trained her throughout her life. Her blood thrummed with energy, her mind raced, her heart beat rapidly beneath her chest. 

She smiled and laughed, and so did the woman. Dany was her alias for the night; Leia was certain it was a new one. Leia’s own alias for the evening was Marie, also a new alias for her. It was safer that way. They were merely acquaintances discussing a business deal and enjoying an evening. There was no reason to suspect that she was Leia Organa, just as there was no reason to suspect her companion was whoever she really was. 

Their fingers brushed and it was as if an electric jolt went through Leia. Aliases or no, she wanted to know this woman’s true story, to tease it out of her while they relaxed and enjoyed the evening in a more private space. 

If only they could share a bottle of Toniray wine. There was nothing like it, and there would never be another. The cocktail Leia was enjoying was a similar color, but the taste was far less sweet and bubbly. Dany drank a fine Corellian whiskey. Leia noted the vintage for future reference in the pocket of her mind where she stored such information. It was a skill that served her well in the Senate, she would admit with pride. One never knew when a piece of information would be useful. She wondered if Dany was noting Leia’s own cocktail, storing that in the back of her own mind for future reference. There was not much else to note from the evening; the women were careful, good. Too good for their own good, for one had to live a dangerous life to both possess and purchase the kind of information in which they were dealing tonight. 

“It’s been a pleasure, Marie,” Dany said. “Thank you for an enjoyable evening. Let’s have one last drink, in celebration of a successful deal, and then I fear I’ll have to retire for the night.” 

“And is our deal successful?” Leia asked. 

Dany slid her drink closer to Leia. On the coaster, there was an advertisement for a liquor called 500 Kings. 

Leia subtly shifted her eyes downward, looking for whatever it was Dany wanted her to notice. 

_500K_ , Leia thought. _Of course_. She was thankful the initial ask wasn’t a higher sum. 

“Perhaps just half a drink more,” Leia said, taking the last sip of her own. “I do have early meetings tomorrow as well.”

Dany smiled. “Certainly, you wouldn’t just stop at half a drink, my dear Marie. It’s cold outside, drink up and warm your blood.” 

Leia would not reveal her disappointment on her face. The Rebellion needed the money. But they needed the intel too. Leia did not need the alcohol to stay warm, but she wouldn’t mind continuing the conversation, as long as they could turn it away from their meeting’s actual purpose.

Praying General Rieekan would forgive her, she initiated the credits transfer after the server brought their new drinks.

“To a successful partnership,” she said, raising her glass.

“To a successful partnership,” Dany replied, meeting her eyes and clinking their glasses. 

_Data download complete_ , her comm indicated, and Leia did not dare breathe a sigh of relief, but rather met her companion’s gaze once more. 

“Where are you staying this evening?” she asked, hoping that was a neutral enough truthful topic. 

“At the Weststar,” Dany replied, and Leia nodded. “I’m staying there as well.” Her safety was worth the extra credits, Rieekan and Mon Mothma told her. It was all worth it for what she now had hidden on her comm. 

“Will you walk back with me, then?” Dany asked, surprising Leia. It didn’t seem like a trap. Perhaps her companion was nervous, though she didn’t seem it at all. It was getting late, and they were two petite women who were imbibing, though not heavily. It would be good to be safe. 

As they left the cantina, Dany extended her arm, and Leia took it. 

They walked, slowly, their breath fogging the chilly night air, their heels clanging on the ground. The moon hung heavy and low in the sky. 

“Perhaps we can meet again, have another drink, when all this is said and done,” Dany said, pausing to look at Leia. 

“I would enjoy that,” Leia admitted. “Though I’m not sure how I’ll ever find you again.”

They walked on for a moment, approaching their hotel, before Dany responded. “I’ll trade you my real name.”

“What is your price?” Leia asked, suddenly short of breath. 

“A kiss,” Dany said, and leaned in. Leia met her mouth with her own. Her lips were soft, and her mouth was warm, and Leia felt like molten gold. 

They broke apart, far too soon, Leia’s hand still on the other woman’s cheek.

“My name is Qi’ra,” she whispered into Leia’s ear, her lips grazing Leia’s earlobe. Leia smiled. 

“A pleasure, Qi’ra,” she said, savoring the way it sounded on her tongue. 

They resumed walking. Qi’ra asked, “And you? Will you trade a kiss for a name?” and Leia smiled again, enjoying the thrill, the danger of the moment. 

“I will,” she said, stopping once more and gazing at Qi’ra in the moonlight. 

They kissed once more, and once more, it ended too soon. 

“My name is Leia,” she whispered. If Qi’ra recognized her or her name, she did not betray it. 

Did she dare invite Qi’ra up to bed with her? She did have other meetings in the morning. She did not want to risk the other woman in case something went wrong, or even if the Imperials traced their transaction, though it was supposed to be untraceable. 

Leia could feel her wetness. It had been too long since she had a lover. But Qi’ra made the decision for her as they entered the hotel, saying “Find me in a few years, and I’ll show you a proper night.” She kissed her hand, winked, and left Leia to return to her room alone and dream.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment with your thoughts and come find me on Tumblr!


End file.
